JBord

Not unexpected.

I wonder how and when they'll push communication on this. That's usually where UA goes from bad to worse.

In my opinion, its always better to announce a change before silently posting on your web site. That always results in chatter, rumors, and negative publicity.

bmwe92fan

I'd just be happy if they operated what they had now properly! Agree with the others - this change is stunning.... I wonder if Delta offered double miles for flights that arrive over 30 min late if UA would follow?

UA-NYC

Keep thinking that...not in this age of reduced industry competition and anti-elite attitudes from UA specifically (GS excluded)

escapefromphl

Really, other 1K's aren't your enemy as much as TOD's and other upgrades that go ahead of you are. And they aren't going to stop selling TOD's.

jason8612

So... Does the foreign address still waive the PQD?

unitedfflyer

As someone who qualifies for Silver every year, I guess this will be my last year as a Premier. I'm a small business owner. You can call me a Kayaker too. Getting value for money is something I have to do for all aspects of my company's finances. WN is becoming more attractive...not because of anything they are improving, but because of all the changes/cuts UA is making. (Maybe getting the MileagePlus Club card is something I should look into.) Just depressing. I'm usually a staunch advocate of UA. (I signed myself up for a MileagePlus account when I was 11 years old and have been loyal ever since.) I have always thought that being positive helps get through the rough patches, (in most things in life). But it's getting harder and harder with this management crew. I understand they are running a business as well...a much MUCH larger business with shareholders. And while I don't have shareholders, (or understand how you keep both clients and shareholders happy at the same time), don't you have to keep your clients at least emotionally neutral? Maybe it is just the FT echo chamber...but morale amongst UA flyers has to be approaching an all-time low? DL and AA flyers could be in the same boat, I guess. OK, sorry for the rant. I'm done.

JBord

Doesn't affect me either as I'm over $12k this year and may not even make Platinum.

But I don't agree with the logic that things will be better for 1K's as a result. I think the majority of 1K's are like me, where the PQD threshold is not really an issue. Its just that this forum is built on a history of fliers who collaborated to get as much out of frequent flying for as little spend as possible...all fair and above board, there's nothing wrong with doing that. But it makes for a disproportionate sample.

What I believe you should be concerned about is we're starting to see frequent changes that don't benefit customers. So you might be fine with it now, but at some point soon it's going to impact you, and me. As others have noted, there is a lot of taking without much giving back to customers.

I feel the same way about RDM earning. I actually do better under the new scheme (even a little better if I only make Platinum), but that's just for now...

StingWest

That's a good way to put it!

If the rants escalate much beyond FT, then maybe that would make some difference. But I fear with such low fuel costs, even poorly run airlines will make a profit in the short term. Profit, or lack thereof, is the only thing that will make a difference in who runs what!

gobluetwo

I can tell you one thing - corporate travel departments will not like this change, as it will likely increase the number of those who deliberately pick more expensive flights in order to ensure they reach revenue thresholds.

My only reasonable alternative is AA. Pros and cons to each (UA, AA), although they are, for the most part, more or less the same in aggregate in terms of fares and routes I fly.

rankourabu

You are dellusional. Even if it may reduce the number of 1ks, you really see an increase in benefits? Dream on.

IAH-OIL-TRASH

I agree. To get there, I'll have to restrict my flying to UA/*A, though (I guess an outcome UA is hoping for...)

Maybe there's no announcement yet because they haven't put the final touches on an enhanced 1K program to account for the fact 1Ks don't get the $25k CC cheat. I gotta quit that pakalolo so early in the morning...

I haven't seen ToD affect ex-OGG since I have getting my upgrades pretty much at T-96, but I'm thinking with revenue requirement, there might be more purchases of P (esp. ex-SFO), which is actually reasonable between left coast and Hawaii. That WOULD reduce my CPU chances.

lhrsfo

At least they haven't copied AA's scheme of separating qualification between miles and $ so that you can mix and match with UA. It does mean that the occasional expensive trip will just about do it.

Scuba2P

The concealment of this change is very troublesome. There was no "heads up" from UA insider, no email (for me yet), and no announcement/link on the home page.

The premier status qualification requirements page is not somewhere we would often navigate to. Even in the charts, PQD amounts are in parentheses below the bolded PQM values.

PV_Premier

I for one am not in the least bit surprised about UA going "cloak and dagger" on the change front. At least Smisek isn't on the TV jamming this down our throat as a "change we will like" (yet).

bse118

^ Nothing about this is surprising - either the change itself or the lack of announcement.

I'll "enjoy" AA for at least one more year, before they go this route as well.